


Meeting the Family

by foofygoldfish



Category: Far Cry 5
Genre: F/M, bad decisions on alice's part, mentions of the inside edens gate crew, the infamous mac n cheese incident, uh pretty much everyone is in this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-02
Updated: 2018-12-02
Packaged: 2019-09-05 23:38:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,408
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16820743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foofygoldfish/pseuds/foofygoldfish
Summary: Soon-to-be Deputy Alice Riley is new (ish) to Hope County, and is introduced to the Seeds and other residents of the county. Featuring a sermon from Joseph, and the infamous mac 'n cheese incident...





	1. part 1

**Author's Note:**

> Alice's sister, Jane, takes her to the Eden's Gate revival! Includes a cameo from the Inside Eden's Gate crew.

Alice knew the cult was a thing when she moved back to Hope County. Of course she did: her mom was one of the first Montanan converts to the the cult. It was an innocuous church then, not anything that could ever be dangerous, despite the Father’s sermons of doom and gloom.

None of them, she’d told Mary May weeks later, were her type, except possibly Faith, definitely not the brothers. She’d learned from watching her sister that a relationship with the Seeds? That is a Bad Idea.

So… How can she explain waking up naked next to Jacob Seed?

* * *

Her second day back in Hope County started as normally as it could: her list of things to do was overwhelming, so of course she was ignoring it. Breakfast at the Spread Eagle seemed like a much better idea than cleaning. Well, lunch. Brunch? It was almost 1:30.

Alice was eating her french toast at the bar when she saw Casey whisper something to Mary May. The cook gave her a worried glance, but Mary May shrugged, looking annoyed, but not worried, came over to her.

“Looks like the welcoming crew is here.”

She looked at the bartender, confused.

“Someone saw the fuckin’ Peggies headed in. They must have heard someone was finally living in your folk’s house.”

“Should….” Alice looked down at her half-full plate, then back up at Mary May. “Should I go? Or, like, is there time to finish or…”

Mary May laughed. “Just bring the plate back later. I know where to find you.”

“So go now?”

Mary May shrugged.

“You’re no help.” Alice grumbled as she slid off the bar stool, “Ugh. It’s too early to be social - don’t you dare laugh at me Casey!”

She had just set the plate down on her kitchen counter when she heard her front door open.

“Anyone home?”

Fuck.

“Alice, you’re either here or at that infernal – Ah.”

“Jane. Hey.” When Mary May had said Peggies were coming, she thought it would be one of the brothers or some random person. Not her sister. “Uhm. Yeah, I was… Breakfast.”

Jane raised her eyebrow, looking at the plate. “It’s almost two.”

“I’m moving to nights after training. I’m kinda up early. I guess.”

“You guess?”

“I’ve had one shift, okay? It’s fuckin’ weird switching sleep schedules like this.” Alice squinted at her sister. “Why are you here, anyways? You said you’d do your own thing for the shop and you made it pretty clear you were too busy to help me clean the place up.”

Her sister smiled at her - a sickly sweet one, one that set Alice on edge. “I came to invite you to church. The Father would love to meet you.”

“No.”

“Alice –”

“Jane.”

“Just once. You can see if you like it, meet the Father and his siblings. Mom won’t be at today’s service, but if you wanted to see her…”

Alice sighed, anxiously running her hand through her hair. “She’s made it pretty clear she doesn’t want anything to do with me or Caleb, so yeah, I’ll pass on seeing her.”

“Does that mean you’ll go?” Jane smiled again, hope replacing the fake sweetness.

“You’re gonna keep coming back if I don’t, aren’t you?” Jane nodded. “Ugh. Fine. _Once_. Once _only_. I’m not doing this shit again.”

“Fantastic! I’ll come back for you soon - when do you work?”

“In a few days. I just had paperwork and shit last night.”

“I’ll pick you up at four.” With that Jane turned to leave, giving the grey cat that had appeared next to her a look. “Really?”

“What? Data thinks he’s a dog. He wants you to pet him.”

“You named him Data.”

Alice blew a raspberry at her sister as she left, and went to pet the cat. “Hmph. Thanks for the backup, babe.”

Data flopped on his side, meowing at his human.

//

Jane showed up at 4pm on the dot. Alice was sitting on her front stoop, basking in the sunlight, praying that her sister wouldn’t show up. Or that she’d be late enough that maybe she could convince her to go to the Spread Eagle or over to th 8-bit for dinner. But nope. Exactly on time, as always.

Grudgingly, she stood up. Her sister had sent a text saying she didn’t need to bring her purse or wallet - which was honestly a little worrying, but… okay. She double-checked that she had remembered to lock the door, and climbed into the truck.

“Hey.” She glanced over at her sister, who was smiling. “…What?”

“You are going to love the sermon today. The Father is speaking at the revival –”

“You’re taking me to a revival?”

Jane ignored her sister. “The Father is speaking at the revival at Teller Ranch. His brothers will be there too, I’ll have to introduce you to John.”

Alice gave her a suspicious glance. She had thought that her sister wasn’t too deep into the cult - but how she was talking about the Seeds… It worried her. Not that Jane would listen to her concerns.

The pair were silent for the majority of the drive: Alice stared out the window, wishing she had brought her phone so she could tune out the stupid faux-gospel music that Jane was singing along to. She didn’t know who Faith was, but she really didn’t need to listen to how people wanted her to help them three times in a row. Occasionally, Jane would perk up and tell Alice about the _amazing_ things that the church (cult) had been doing. Helping failing farmers, helping families who had gone under on their mortgages, they’d started a new school to replace the long-closed Fall’s End High. Objectively, Alice knew that the cult had done _some_ good things, but after hearing about the cult from Mary May? She knew to take her sister’s words with a large grain of salt.

“We’re here!”

Alice looked up as Jane brought the car to a stop at the side of a road. She had no idea where they were. There were other cars stopped at the side of the road, but no buildings to give her an idea of their location. Well, okay, no, she _technically_ knew where they were, but when you have been gone for so long… “Teller Ranch” doesn’t really mean much.

Off in the distance, maybe half a mile from the road, Alice could see a tent. Everyone seemed to be making their way towards it, and she groaned. They were close enough to the Moccasin River that mosquitos would be a problem, and she _really_ didn’t feel like dealing with those… Her sister had grabbed her hand, though, and started pulling her towards the tent, so she didn’t have a choice.

Great.

Once in the tent, Jane tried to pull Alice towards the front, to a group of people in the cult’s “uniform.” Her friends?

“Janey… You’re pushing it.” Alice pulled her hand away from her sister, and moved to the farthest back bench. Frowning, her sister sat down next to her. “Do I really need to be here?”

Jane gave her a sharp look, before perking up. A huge smile came across her face as a tall, dark-haired man stepped onto the stage.

“What?” Alice looked at her, and then to the man on the stage.

“It’s John. That’s Jacob next to him.” God, she looked like a lovesick teenager. Though - if that look was meant for the red-haired man next to John - well… He’s not too bad looking. Rough, not really her type, but handsome. The fact that he was in a position of respect within the cult, though, kiiiiinda negated that handsomeness.

The man surveyed the crowd, hands on his hips. “You are here because you are scared.”

Jane nodded. Did she really believe this? Alice was afraid of what was happening in the world, but she wasn’t running off to join a cult…

“Scared because of what you see on the news, what you hear on the radio. Deception. _Godlessness_. Who is accountable, who is in charge?” He gave the crowd a half-smile. “There is an answer to that fear. He has a name - Joseph Seed!”

The crowd, Jane included, cheered as a man wearing yellow glasses and a pastor’s collar walked into the tent. Behind her, a small group walked in to the tent, drawing the notice of Jacob. Alice looked up at them, to see if they wanted to sit, but one of of the quartet - a tall brunette, not someone that she recognized from town (not that she would, Alice thought, unless she had been in the Spread Eagle in the last few days) - shook her head. She shrugged, turning her attention back to Joseph Seed.

“I want you all to close your eyes for a moment. Think about the world outside this tent, outside this county. Can you see how sick our society has become?” Joseph looked around, smiling as he saw his followers with their eyes closed. “Can you see the disease creepin’ across the land? Greed. War. Starvation. It’s because people have moved away from God. There is a _hatred_ brewing.” As people opened their eyes, he looked each of them in the eyes. As he said hatred, he met hers, sending a shiver down her spine. “It’s like a slow-acting poison churning in our guts. So I ask you: when you think of the world out there, do you feel safe?”

The faithful shook their heads, many answering “No.”

Alice looked around at the congregation, noticing that of those gathered, she and the latecomers were the only ones who weren’t soaking in every one of Joseph’s words. One of them leaned forward, whispering to the woman who had declined a seat. “That’s Linney. Third row.”

She didn’t have time to wonder what was happening before Joseph continued. “Of course not. You can feel it comin’, can’t you? In the morning, when you turn on the television or pick up your newspaper, you see the headlines and the fear, the confusion, the _anger_. See, we are like frightened animals, just creepin’ towards the edge. And there _will_ be a reckoning.” He swept his eyes over her and the four next to her. “It is painful. I look right into your hearts and see how much pain you have, I see the scars the world has left upon your souls. But I’m here to tell you that the suffering… Well, that is a choice. You can choose a better path. We love you.”

Jane elbowed her in her ribs. Alice rolled her eyes.

“We _want_ you. We accept you _exactly_ the way you are.” Joseph smiled, spreading his arms to the crowd. “Every single one of you. I stand here asking you to join me, to join my family, and we will help you find your peace, your sanctuary. I am your Father, and _you_ are my children. Together, we will march to Eden’s Gate.”

He continued there: bible verses, Project news updates, memos from both John and Jacob detailing the need for supplies and volunteers to train under Jacob’s Chosen, ending with stories of successes new converts had accomplished.

After his sermon was over, Jane pulled Alice out of the tent, waiting with a group of Peggies that were waiting to talk to the Father and his Heralds.

“Father, Jacob, this is my baby sister, Claire! She just moved back to Fall’s End. I wanted her to see how much you have done for the county.” Jane smiled, shaking the hands of the Father and Jacob, giving Alice a look that told her to do the same (she did, minus the smile).

Alice sighed. “Call me Alice. Jane’s the only one who calls me Claire nowadays.”

Though the Father was smiling at her, she knew her indifference hadn’t gone unnoticed. “Hello, Alice.”

Jane excused them, and pulled her in John’s direction. Just out of his earshot, she paused, and turned to Alice. “Don’t embarrass me.”

“Why would I embarrass you?” Alice rolled her eyes, “Fine. Whatever.”

“ _Alice_.”

“I said fine!” Alice tugged her arm away from her sister. “Why are you so nervous? Is he your - _oh my god you aren’t_.”

“Alice –”

“ _You’re dating_ –” Jane glared at her, stopping Alice from continuing. “Do –”

“Yes, I am, no, they don’t know, now let’s just… “

“God, this is awkward.” Alice groaned, and followed her sister over to John.

She stood there awkwardly for a moment before Jane turned to her, holding John’s hand. “John, this is my little sister, –”

“Alice. Just call me Alice.” She shrugged. “If she tells you to call me Claire, ignore her.”

John smiled. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”

Alice glanced at Jane, “Uh, I hope good things. Not the baby stories or anything.”

“No, no, just the good things.” John looked between the two sisters, “Are you looking to join the Project?”

“John is the one who baptizes all new converts.” Jane explained. “He could baptize you!”

Alice shrugged. “Honestly, I just want to get settled right now.” And she had promised Pastor Jerome that she would go to his service the next day. He was so kind, and so _genuine_ , that choosing between his church and the Project was an easy decision. Even if she didn’t go to church much these days. Although, she could see just dropping in every few Sundays going a lot better with Pastor Jerome than with the Father…

“That’s understandable. How long have you been back in town?”

“Uh… Two days? I got in late on Thursday. Had training at the station - uh, I’m in dispatch at the Sheriff’s office - last night. I haven’t really had time to get anything but my cat’s shi..stuff unpacked.” She swatted at a mosquito buzzing near her head, and then looked at her sister. “Uh, no offence to either of you, but is it okay if I go chill in the car till you’re done? I’m being eaten alive.”

Jane frowned, but John laughed. “Yes, of course.” He replied. “I hope to see you at church on Sunday.”

Alice gave him an awkward smile as she left for the truck. God, that was awkward. The Seeds all seemed so _sure_ that she was going to follow in her sister’s footsteps and join the cult, that the thought of staying neutral wouldn’t cross her mind. She had seen John’s eyes light up when she mentioned that she worked in the Sheriff’s office - did they have people in the office? Well, they had to - with how big the cult was… Fuck. She should ask the Sheriff about that when she started.

She sat there, stewing over what the brothers had said, until her sister came back to the car.

“You _had_ to leave early.” Jane scowled at her as she started the truck.

Alice raised her arm, pointing at a mosquito bite. “You didn’t tell me these fuckers would be here too!”

“It’s by a river!”

“One, _you didn’t tell me that_ , two, I’ve lived in LA for the last decade, we don’t have mosquitoes there!”

“You just didn’t want to –”

“No shit I didn’t want to talk to them. I told you I didn’t want to go to this.” She crossed her arms, looking out the side window. “I’m not going on Sunday.”

“I wasn’t going to ask you to, after how you behaved.”

Alice shot her sister a glare, before turning back to the window. She wanted to protest when Jane turned the cult radio station back on, even louder than before, but she _really_ didn’t want to be fighting the rest of the way home… Or at the shop on Monday, fuck. If Jane even showed.

Jane was still giving her the silent treatment when they got back to the house. Alice slinked inside, slamming the door shut and plopping herself on the couch.

“Fucking _hell_.” Crookshanks looked at her from across the room, and moved to sit next to her human. “Crook, I liked her better from a thousand miles away.”


	2. part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> featuring the barbeque, Alice's love of mac 'n cheese, domestic jacob, and Alice making Bad Decisions.

Mary May was amazing at telling Alice when things were happening: for example, the bartender had known about the Rye family barbecue for weeks, but only told Alice the morning of, while Alice was eating breakfast after Pastor Jerome’s sermon.

Now, Alice was sitting in her truck at the end of the Rye’s driveway, trying to work up the nerve to actually _go_ to the barbecue. She knew Mary May would be there, and Pastor Jerome, and, well, the Ryes, but… She still didn’t want to go and deal with all the ‘Oh what have you been doing’s and ‘Oh you’ve grown so much! How old are you now?’s from the people who knew her dad.

She almost turned to leave when a familiar car parked behind her. Sheriff Whitehorse climbed out, followed by who she thought was his daughter and her twins. With a sigh, she slid out of her truck and waved at him.

“Hey, Sheriff.”

“Alice!” The Sheriff smiled at her, and then grunted in surprise - one of the twins had run up to him, trying to drag him towards the barbeque, the other close behind. “I’ll… See you there.”

His daughter laughed, moving to walk next to Alice. “They’re excited. Nick said he’d take them up in Carmina.”

“Carmina..?”

“His plane. You’re new here, aren’t you?”

“Yes and no? I grew up here, it’s just… been a while. Forgot the Rye’s named their plane.”

The other woman nodded. “Oh, right, you’re… Alice, right? The new recruit. I’m Erin. I’m in the day shift.”

“Yup.” Alice nodded, listening to Erin ramble on about the department and the town, and then froze in place at the end of the driveway when she saw the full extent of the barbeque. It seemed like Nick had prepared for everyone in the county to be there, and most of them had actually shown up. People were streaming in and out of the hangar closest to the house, most carrying plates loaded with food, and Nick… Was nowhere to be seen. She could see Grace, though, and her dad, hugging the wall by Nick’s arcade machine, and the Fairgraves had assigned themselves to the food - Mary May and Drew watching the buffet line, their mom at the bar (only punch and beer it looked like, much to Alice’s disappointment), and their dad… Somewhere. Probably by the grill, critiquing whoever was cooking there, if he was anything like he used to be.

Erin tapped Alice’s shoulder, and pointed in the direction of the runway. “I’m gonna go find Nick, I’ll let him and Kim know you’re here!”

She sighed. There were so _many_ people here. None of them peggies - or at least, the ones that wear the cult’s “uniform.” It was weird, really - pretty much everywhere she had gone since arriving back in Hope County, there had been a peggie or five or ten. The general store (buying, of all things, toilet paper - she had laughed at that, you would think the cult would go to Costco or something for that), the bar (demanding the Rye’s stop selling liquor), the gas stations… Everywhere. This was nice. _Normal_.

Logically, she knew she should go and mingle, but honestly? Being around this many people in Hope County was _weird_. Instead, she placed her bowl of mashed potatoes on the table next to Mary May, and slinked off to lean against the wall. She spotted who she _thought_ was Nick, giving piggyback rides to one of Erin’s kids while being chased by the other, and laughed, before feeling a wet nose press against her knee. Looking down, she saw a grey and white dog looking up at her, tail wagging at what seemed like the speed of light.

“Hey! Sorry about Boomer, he’s a little excited today.” A blonde woman walked up to her, grabbing the dog’s collar. “Lots of kids spoiling him! I’m Rae-Rae.”

Alice bent down to pet Boomer, then looked up at Rae-Rae. “You own the pumpkin farm, right?”

The other woman nodded. “Yup. Been in my family for decades.”

“I loved going there when I was a kid!” She grinned, then laughed as Boomer plopped down, begging for a belly rub.

“You’re a local?”

“Yeah, grew up here. Just moved back.”

Rae-Rae smiled. “Hope to see you at the farm this fall!”

“You bet! I miss good old-fashioned pumpkin patches.” Alice nodded, laughing as Boomer darted off to say hello to someone else. She waved as Rae-Rae sighed, following the excited dog.

It didn’t take long for the Sheriff to come up to her, forcing her to introduce herself to the people of Hope County, those around her age in particular - there was Elizabeth, the self-proclaimed “Horse Girl,” Stella the lumberjack (who protested that name - she made a point to tell Alice if she wanted fresh eggs, her chickens laid the best in the county), a “proper” introduction to his daughter and grandkids, and _so_ many more.

She liked people, yeah, but… There was no way she was going to remember 90% of the names. Or faces. Both of those together? Absolutely not.

//

“So. You look as miserable as I feel.” Alice leaned against the wall next to the eldest Seed brother, carefully holding her bowl of food. “I mean, I like all the people here, it’s just… A lot. And I’m fu..freaking tired.” Jacob snorted. At her statement, or at her remembering she shouldn’t swear around toddlers, she wasn’t sure. “Well, at least someone brought mac n’ cheese. Everything’s better with mac n’ cheese.”

She looked at Jacob, and then out over the crowds, missing the momentary flash of worry that came over the man’s face. Nick was in a heated discussion (? hopefully.) with John about… Something, Joseph and Faith were sitting at a picnic table outside, eating and talking to Erin (she’d have to ask her about that later - she either had the patience of a saint or was genuinely interested in what the two were saying), Elizabeth and Stella were off playing fetch with Boomer while Rae-Rae ate, and… There were still a lot of people who she didn’t know. At least the Sheriff had stopped introducing her to people - he was a few beers in and telling stories to a group of kids that had gathered, with full sound effects and arm motions. Distracted, she took a bite of the mac n’ cheese.

“Oh, _god_.”

Jacob looked at her.

“This is _horrible_.” Alice blanched, setting the bowl down on the table beside her. “It’s an insult to mac n’ cheese everywhere. It’s like… Soup.”

“Is it that bad?”

She raised an eyebrow at him. “Do you want to try it?”

“…No.”

“Yeah. It’s _that_ bad. I almost want to find who brought it and teach them how to make proper mac n’ cheese.”

Jacob chuckled. “Are you really that insulted?”

“Yes!! I have a lot of feelings about mac n’ cheese. It’s not hard to make, you just — Oh god.” She gaped at Jacob. “You brought it, didn’t you. I mean, it wasn’t here when I got here, and you guys were the last ones – Shit.”

He laughed again - Alice took that as a sign that the man wasn’t insulted. Thank _God_.

The conversation was easy from then: talking to him was so _easy_ , not something she would have guessed from his gruff appearance.

“Hey.” Alice looked over at Jacob. “Do you… Wanna get outta here or something? I mean, it looks like your brothers are pretty, uh, distracted right now –” She looked over to the airstrip, where Nick and John’s debates had turned into a full-on literal flying competition, “So we could go into town or something, not like…”

“Sure.”

Alice looked at him, startled. She didn’t think he would _actually_ say yes, but then again, he seemed like the type that would like parties like this. “My car is here, or –”

“Let’s…” He looked around. “Let’s walk. Need some air.”

“Oh. Sure. Uh, I’ll just drop my keys with Mary May. She can bring it back for me.” He nodded, and Alice darted off to find Mary May.

Her friend was standing on the outskirts of the crowd, shaking her head at her brother’s enthusiastic cheering. It took her a moment to catch her attention - the noise from the planes overhead was so loud - and when she did, she dragged her to a nearby tree.

“What?” Mary May looked at her, raising her eyebrow when she saw Alice’s expression. “What did you do.”

“Uh, I haven’t done anything yet, but –” She took a deep breath. “I might be doing something stupid?”

Mary May rubbed her forehead, sighing. “How stupid?”

“Uhm, can you drive my car home?”

“Alice.”

“Please?”

“Why aren’t you taking your car?”

“Uh, I’m walking back?”

“By yourself?” Mary May frowned when Alice shook her head, “Who are you going with?”

“Uhm… Jacob?”

“Jacob….?”

“Seed?”

“Fucking _hell_ , Alice.” Mary May grabbed her friend’s arm, turning them away from the crowd. “What the fuck are you thinking?”

Alice shrugged. “Uhm. I’m… He seems –”

“Don’t say it.”

“He’s not as horrible as John?” Alice winced. “I know, I know that’s bad but – I’ve been talking to him and –”

“You were - how long were you talking??”

She gulped. “Like, two hours? You were busy, and I don’t really know anyone, and we started talking before I really knew who he was and –”

“Alice. You –”

“We’re just going to walk back to town and, I dunno, I’ll give him a tour. Of town. I just don’t want to walk back.” Alice squirmed under Mary May’s gaze, “Look, I’m not going to do anything –”

“Alice!!!” Oops. “I wasn’t thinking you were going to – god, _please_ don’t fuck him. Please.”

“I promise!! Can you please just bring my car back? Uh, and my bowl?” Mary May squinted at her, then gave her a slow, reluctant nod. Alice hugged her, shoving the key in her hands. “Thank youuuu. I can pick them up from your place or whatever, just let me know when you get home!”

Turning towards the driveway she parked on, Alice saw Jacob leaning against a tree.

Silently, they walked to the main road together.

_This was a mistake._

_This is a mistake._

_Why do I feel safe?_

_I’ve heard the rumors, I’ve heard of what he can do - why do I feel safe?_

They chattered aimlessly as they walked to town - it was a surprisingly long walk, just over an hour, with stops by the stream and to watch (too-friendly, too at ease around humans) deer.

Jacob told her stories of his family - happy ones, silly ones, a story of John trying to teach Joseph to fly, of Jacob taking Faith hunting. Alice told him about trips around the Southwest with her brother, misadventures from college, all the weird pieces of Americana she saw on her drive back to Hope County.

He laughed when, after finally arriving at her house, he saw her tiny little mini cooper.

“Shut up!” Alice groaned. “Look, my brother drove with me, we took turns with the moving truck, it’s –”

“That thing won’t last the winter.”

“My dad’s old truck’s at the shop.” She nodded her head in the direction of the mechanic’s shop, shrugging. “I fucking hate driving it, but…”

“It’s proven?”

“Yeah. I guess. Mary May laughed at me too.”

“The bartender?”

She nodded. “Yeah. We’ve been friends for years. As long as I can remember. Her folks live - well, they all used to live next door. She told me they had issues with the house so they’re all above the bar now.”

Pausing at the front step, Alice turned to Jacob. “Uh. Do you want to come in? We could, like, uh… The creek’s nice to walk –” He shrugged. “Oh. Okay. Uh. I have two cats.”

“And?”

“Uh, I didn’t know if you’d have an issue with them. They like meeting new people.”

Another shrug. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door. She could hear a soft pitter-patter from upstairs turn into a small stampede down the stairs, and she almost pulled Jacob inside before the cats could make a break for it.

He seemed amused.

  
That… Was a good sign? Possibly?

Her cats liked him, too - also a possible good sign. The little assholes loved to rub up to people, begging for pets and treats (she wasn’t kidding when she told Jane that Data thought he was a dog), then, after time had passed, they’d show their actual opinion of the new person.

Jacob did pet them - that was a good sign. Crookshanks was happy with her chin scratch, and Data wove himself between the man’s legs.

“Do you, uh, want something to drink? Or we could watch a movie or something - and fuck, sorry about the mess,” How did she forget about that? Boxes everywhere, piles of stuff that were half-unpacked…. “It’s been a busy few days, I was going to do some more yesterday, but my sister hijacked my plans and made me go to that thing out at the Teller’s, and uh…”

Was that a smile?

It was close, at least.

“Do you want help?”

Alice’s eyes widened. “Uh. I mean, if you want?”

Another shrug.

“…Do you want a drink? Only really have water right now but.. Uh…”

A nod, then a glance at the box next to the tv.

“Oh. Uh. If you want? They can go on the shelf right over there. Uh. I’m going to grab… Yeah.” Alice ducked into the kitchen, taking a deep breath as the door swung shut behind her. Fucking _hell_ \- this isn’t where she expected any of this to go.

She thought he’d leave after they got to town, chill at the cafe or something until his brothers or one of the peggies picked him up.

Helping her unpack? That wasn’t even on her list of possibilities.

Reaching into the fridge for her water pitcher, she spotted the beer her brother had bought - she thought Caleb had taken it with him, or taken it over to Staci’s house when he visited his old friend, but… Huh.

“Hey, do you want a beer?” She poked her head through the door, holding the bottle up for him to see. “I mean, I can’t guarantee that it’s good, but I might have some liquor in my food box if you want that too, I’d just have to dig…”

“Sure.”

“Beer?”

“Yeah.”

Silently, she handed him the bottle, smiling when she realized that he was alphabetizing the DVDs, then went back to the kitchen to make a drink.

It may have been _insanely_ awkward - but honestly? This was going better than she expected.

Maybe she could talk him into helping put together a bookshelf upstairs? Worth a shot, at least.

–

He did.

The fucking bookshelf was _done_. Alice thought she would have bribe one of her brother’s old friends, or maybe Mary May or her brother, but… This was easier.

There were a few jabs at the lack of tools in her house - in her defence, it was just a quick jaunt over to her family’s shop, she didn’t _really_ need to keep tools here too (he disagreed) - and at the amount of stuff she had stuffed into her brother’s old bedroom-turned-storage-room upstairs, the amount of cat toys that were already spread around the house… He was funnier than he looked. Dry humor, but still humor. It worked for him.

The two of them were sitting on her bed now, watching a movie that he’d chosen, both working on their drink of choice.

Her sister would be horrified.

Or not, she thought, if she _is_ fucking John fucking Seed. Though she’d probably think it’s… Not _proper_ or whatever.

She swears - her contempt for her sister had nothing to do with her leaning over and kissing Jacob.

It was a factor - but really? He’s cute.

She’ll never see him again.

No consequences, right?

Jacob kissing her back wasn’t something she really expected - it took a minute, he definitely wasn’t expecting this, but… He did respond.

It moved fast from there - his hand moved to her lower back, then slipped under her shirt -

She _should_ stop him.

But she didn’t.

It wasn’t an _emotional_ night, really, almost a stress-relief thing.

Him spending the night was… _Definitely_ not expected.

Leaving without a word while she was in the shower, though? That was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the abrupt ending! This literally started from a throwaway line in a character development ficlet and... Yeah. It spiralled a little out of control.


End file.
